ARS BRUNENSIS CHORUS is a mixed choir established in 1979 in Brno as The Brno Choir of Musical Youth. Since then it has performed both in the Czech Republic and abroad, it has participated successfully in a lot of international competitions (it is an absolute winner of international competition IFAS in Pardubice 1998). The choir has made a number of radio and television recordings and has released several CDs. Its repertoire concentrates on renaissance and baroque a capella music and on music of contemporary Czech composers. At its concerts the choir often presents compositions of Petr Eben, Petr Reznícek, Bohuslav Martinu, Leoš Janácek and Vítezslav Novák. It has become well-known for the first performances of Vladimir Franz´s music. However, it also participates on vocal-instrumental projects with prominent orchestras, such as Moravian Philharmonic Olomouc, Brno Chamber Orchestra or Chamber Orchestra of Slovak State Philharmonic Musica Aeterna. Since 1996 the choir has been specialising in baroque cantatas and oratorios (J.S.Bach, G.F.Handel, A.Vivaldi).

During the seasons 1998-2002 the choir participated in the recording of Vladimir Franz´s scenic music (Goethe´s Faust performed in Brno, Orác a smrt, Bloudení, Pašije performed in Prague and Judit performed in Zlin). In 1999 Handel´s oratorio Israel in Egypt (with the outstanding British contra-tenor R. Tyson and Musica Aeterna) was presented on the occasion of the choir´s anniversary. The concert was a great success and had several subsequent performances. At Christmas concerts Jirí Pavlica´s Missa brevis got its premiere and G. Zrunek´s Vánocná omša G dur was performed in co-operation with the folk ensemble Hradištan and Brnenský komorní orchestr. These compositions were then recorded for the label Supraphon in February 2000.

In summer 2000 the choir gave two unique concerts (the programme was called "J.S.Bach and His Family") conducted by a famous Dutch conductor Simon Schouten which took place in Brno and at an Austrian festival La Donna in Musica. In autumn 2000 Ars Brunensis Chorus sang Mozart´s concert opera Thamos at an opening concert of a festival in Como, Italy. In the season of 2000/2001 the major projects included participation in a festival in Wroclaw, Poland, recording of a CD Cape of good Hope with Jirí Pavlica and organizing of a Cycle of Spiritual Music Concerts in Brno.

At the beginning of the season 2001/2002 the choir took part in the Festival of Baroque Music in Olomouc, in November it performed Händel´s Israel in Egypt at a festival in Bratislava (with Musica Aeterna, soloists: T. Merklová, A. Zdunikowski, R. Tyson). Before Christmas the choir presented rarely performed advent cantatas of J.S.Bach and G. P. Telemann together with the Ensemble Baroque 2001 at the charity concerts for Archa Chantall Foundation. The successful co-operation with composer Vladimír Franz reached its peak in January 2002 when a recording of scenic music for drama Markéza Lazarová (directed by J.A.Pitínský) was made for the National Theatre in Prague. In spring the choir together with the Quintet De Monte gave concerts of madrigals (O. Lasso, C. Monteverdi, P. de Monte, B. Martinu, V. Franz). The month of July was devoted to intensive work on recordings for Vienna Modern Masters.

Conductors:

The founder of Ars Brunensis Chorus in 1979 was Jan Rozehnal. Since 1993 the choir was led by Roman Válek who has been co-operating with it up to now. The present conductor is Dan Kalousek.

Dan Kalousek (born 1980 in Brno) has been the conductor since the year 2000, before that he worked for two years as an assistant-conductor. As a singer he experienced co-operation with several Czech and foreign choirs with which he performed in a number of concerts. After finishing Secondary School he studied composing and conducting at the Brno Conservatoire (Academy of Art). At present he is a student of the Janacek Academy of Music and Drama Arts (JAMU) in Brno, specialisation orchestra conducting. During his career as a conductor of Ars Brunensis Chorus he gave many concerts in his country as well as abroad, he recorded several CDs for Vienna Modern Masters, he worked on projects with Jirí Pavlica and ensemble Jablkon. He also co-operated with Vladimír Franz on the recording of his scenic music for the National Theatre Brno (The Beauty and The Beast) and for the National Theatre Prague (Markéta Lazarová).